What’s Up, Doc? The Animation Art of Chuck Jones features original illustrations, archival photos, animation cells, storyboards, sketches and other works by the late artist. In the industry, he was a real Renaissance man, working as an animator, cartoon artist, screenwriter, producer and director.

The bulk of the exhibition is dedicated to his famous Looney Tunes oeuvre, as well as his collaborations with Theodor Geisel (better known as Dr. Seuss) on the TV specials How the Grinch Stole Christmas! and Horton Hears a Who!. But his lesser-known projects are represented, too, like his Oscar-winning short The Dot and the Line: A Romance in Lower Mathematics. If you take the time to read the cards, you'll also find out some fabulous facts, like how Degas' ballerinas inspired Bugs Bunny's posture, or that Van Gogh's "Bedroom in Arles" appears in One Froggy Evening.

The most fun part of the exhibit for children ages 7 and up will most likely be the Animation Takeover in the Drop-In Moving Image Studio. It was definitely my kids' favorite. On Saturdays from noon to 5pm, you can drop in to try the following Chuck Jones-inspired activities with the help of museum educators:

Design a Character Sketch: Reach into one box and pull out an adjective. Reach into another and pull out the name of an animal. Then draw a creature inspired by the words. My daughter had no trouble sketching a Happy Monkey, though my son agonized mightily over an Aggressive Mouse, lamenting, "You can't make a mouse look aggressive! They have such tiny arms."

Create an Abstract Animation: The minute my 10-year-old saw a computer, he was done with the hand-drawn projects. He spent the rest of the session crafting a stop-motion short by moving geometric shapes around a black background, taking a photograph of each position before moving them again. At the end of 45 minutes he had completed a... 15-second film.

Create a Hand-Drawn Cartoon: Though this project can be done alone, it's easier and more fun as a team. Using the classic Duck Amuck, in which Daffy Duck is constantly erased and dropped into new animated backgrounds by Bugs Bunny, as inspiration, kids are given a black-and-white drawing to color that they take photos of as they go along. The result is a self-coloring animation. My son and daughter took turns on this one and created a cute 35-second film.

Bonus: All shorts can be emailed home, where they won't take up any room, yay! (Except on your computer, of course).

While the Animation Takeover in the Drop-In Moving Image Studio was definitely the highlight of our visit, a few important tips. There are only three stations in the Studio, and each one seats five kids at most. We got there as soon as the room opened (because I'm neurotic that way), but subsequent families were repeatedly told to come back later, as there were always more children than available spots. So try to arrive when it opens. Speaking of, remember that the animation projects in the Studio only take place on Saturdays from noon to 5pm through October 14. That's it. If you end up visiting on another day or the Studio is just too crowded, you'll find another dozen non-Chuck Jones-related stations outside the Studio, where kids can make stop-motion animations Monty Python-style, with cut-out props and colorful backgrounds.

Of course, a Chuck Jones exhibit wouldn't be complete without cartoons. And the museum is hosting Chuck Jones Matinees every Saturday and Sunday at 1pm in its cushy theater. The irony is, while my kids knew the most famous characters from general pop culture, they'd never actually seen the cartoons! Now, thanks to the hour we spent watching Jones' work, my children finally known all about Marvin the Martian and the Road Runner, how to be "vewy, vewy quiet," and, most importantly, why the sight of a black top hat makes their uncle break out into "Hello, my baby, hello, my honey...."

One warning about the screenings: The violence may be cartoonish, but guns are treated very casually. Several creatures (okay, a duck and a coyote) are repeatedly shot in the head (to very little ill-effect) and one cartoon, Rabbit Seasoning, opens with a poem, "If you're looking for fun/You don't need a reason./All you need is a gun." You wouldn't see that on Nickelodeon today!

What’s Up, Doc? The Animation Art of Chuck Jones is on view at the Museum of the Moving Image through Monday, January 19, 2015. The museum is located at 36-01 35th Avenue between 36th and 37th Streets in Astoria, Queens. The exhibit and all activities and screenings are free with admission: $12 for adults, $9 for students and $6 for children ages 3-12.

Find out about other great exhibits for kids in our Museum Guide.